Users of mobile computing devices, such as mobile phones, smartphones, and personal digital assistants, store various types of data on the devices. Contact information, calendar appointments, applications and web browser favorites, just to name a few, may all be stored on mobile computing devices. This data is also updated from time to time by a user or other data sources with new data.
Data backup systems allow data from one computing device to be backed up to a secondary memory device, such as a portable hard drive, server computer, digital versatile disc, or other memory device. The backed-up data can then be restored to the same device in the event of data loss or to a new computing device in the case of the user acquiring a replacement or upgraded device. Data loss can occur if the mobile computing device is broken, or if the mobile computing device is stolen or lost.